By Aris Barkas/ barkas@eurohoops.net
Something big is about to go down as, according to many police sources, most of the eight gangs left standing are heading to Istanbul this week. Needless to say, the five suspects who were arrested last week are already free as birds, as the authorities failed to make a case against them. There’s plenty of havoc being spread, but the missing EuroLeague trophy is nowhere to be found.
Brad Wanamaker: His reputation is more notorious than ever after the Madrid heist. Darussafaka Dogus Istanbul scored big against Real Madrid and once more he led the way with 21 points. He is not flying under the radar any more, and the police were looking for him at the Spanish borders, but his arrest didn’t change much. He is already back at his base in Turkey, being pursued by the “Los Blancos”.
Milos Teodosic: The Serb mastermind couldn’t miss the big feast and his genius was evident once more as CSKA Moscow beat Baskonia Vitoria Gasteiz twice. The bottom line is that you can’t predict what he will do. His devil-may-care attitude is a ruse: he doesn’t leave anything to chance. That’s why he had 22 points and 5 assists on Tuesday and then 16 points and 8 assists on Thursday. The Basques left Moscow empty-handed and he is the main reason for that.
Bogdan Bogdanovic: This Serb hit-man massacred Panathinaikos Superfoods Athens. He had no remorse for his foul deeds as Fenerbahce Istanbul triumphed twice on hostile territory. And it was only natural that he was arrested when he had 23 and 25 points, shooting from every direction and always hitting his mark. He may well b the most wanted criminal in Athens, but he is already in Istanbul, waiting for the next showdown.
Tyler Honeycutt: Here’s one more Turkey-based criminal who got the job done in Greece. He was arrested in the port after helping Anadolu Efes Istanbul steal Game 2 from Olympiacos Piraeus, even if Anadolu Efes Istanbul was more than ready for the challenge against the Reds. Known as a jack-of-all-trades, he proved it with 15 points and 9 rebounds. Ultimately, he slipped a dragnet as the police’s attention was diverted to a red-headed shooter who fired the last shot.
Sergio Llull: While Real Madrid‘s reign at the underworld took a direct hit by Darussafaka Dogus Istanbul, he was there to protect his home turf with 23 points 6 assists. Of course, despite his actions, he was hailed as a local hero in the Spanish capital and was let go. He is already spotted near the Turkish borders and every one expects him to emerge this week in Istanbul.